Back in 2003, there were talks of invading Iraq over the assumption that the country possessed weapons of mass destruction. Now, a book released on Sunday – God, Spies and Lies by South African journalist John Matisonn – describes how SA’s president Thabo Mbeki tried in vain to convince both Blair and Bush that the invasion was not a good idea.

Even Nelson Mandela attempted to convince Bush, but was later reported saying:

President Bush doesn’t know how to think.

This week Mbeki’s office supported claims confirming that Mbeki pleaded with both leaders and even offered to become the intermediary with Saddam Hussein in a bid to maintain peace. You see, South Africa had unique insight into the situation:

South Africa had a special insight into Iraq’s potential for WMD because the apartheid government’s own biological, chemical and nuclear weapons programme in the 1980s led the countries to collaborate. The programme was abandoned after the end of white minority rule in 1994 but the expert team, known as Project Coast, was put back together by Mbeki to investigate the US and UK assertion that Saddam had WMD – the central premise for mounting an invasion.

Mbeki asked for the team to be granted access. The book describes Mbeki’s influence:

Saddam agreed, and gave the South African team the freedom to roam unfettered throughout Iraq.They had access to UN intelligence on possible WMD sites. The US, UK and UN were kept informed of the mission and its progress.

The experts put their prior knowledge of the facilities to good use.

They already knew the terrain, because they had travelled there as welcome guests of Saddam when both countries were building WMD.

On their return, they reported that there were no WMDs in Iraq. They knew where the sites in Iraq had been, and what they needed to look like. But there were now none in Iraq.

The year of 2003 began with Mbeki sending his team over to Washington to explain their finding – but with no success. Mbeki then met with Blair personally for three hours to no avail.

He warned that the wholesale removal of Saddam’s Ba’ath party could lead to a national resistance to the occupying coalition forces. But with huge military deployments already under way, Blair’s mind was clearly made up.

When Frank Chikane, director-general in the president’s office, realised that the South Africans would be ignored, it was “one of the greatest shocks of my life”, he later wrote in a memoir.

And Mandela?

Mandela, now retired, had tried as well. On Iraq, if not other issues, Mandela and Mbeki were on the same page. Mandela phoned the White House and asked for Bush. Bush fobbed him off to [Condoleezza] Rice. Undeterred, Mandela called former President Bush Sr, and Bush Sr called his son the president to advise him to take Mandela’s call. Mandela had no impact. He was so incensed he gave an uncomfortable comment to the camera’s: ‘President Bush doesn’t know how to think,’ he said with visible anger.”

And what do we have now? After air strikes on Baghdad began on 19 March, 2003, the conflict is still ongoing more than a decade later and hundreds of people have been killed and displaced. Also, we now have ISIS. Egos and money, ne?